R&G: A Brief History of Grime’s Softer Side

Like most future-facing genres, grime—the rhyme-focused dance sound out of East London—has had its fair share of mutations throughout its 16 years. There was “grindie” (grime and indie), experimental grime (house/techno-infused), sinogrime (Asian-influenced), and R&G (rhythm and grime), a spin-off that many critics and fans believe was too short-lived. At the back end of 2003, R&G was summoned by three British producers—Terror Danjah, DaVinChe, and Scratcha DVA (with the support of BBC Radio 1Xtra’s DJ Cameo)—who discerned an emotive warmth in the sound’s rough-and-ready rhythms. No longer was it all about the emcee and their hood-heavy content—grime was now able to show its softer side with the same level of cool.

A culmination of R&B vocals and harsh-sounding beats at 140 (or R&B melodies running through icy instrumentals), R&G was made anthemic by the sultry tones of London-based singers Sadie Ama, Lady Ny, Katie Pearl, and Gemma Fox. Their romantic yet empowering anthems proved that grime could be tamed under the right note, offering an alternative to the emcee-led culture it was built upon. But R&G wasn’t strictly for the women of the scene. East London grime outfit Ruff Sqwad had a penchant for it too; “Together”—a track from their 2005 mixtape, Guns & Roses Vol. 1, which sampled the Police’s “Message in a Bottle”—saw the guys open up with some real, genuine emotion. If not through their productions, Ruff Sqwad would often nod to R&G by tackling themes of love within their lyrics, which wasn’t the norm for grime rappers at the time.

Following the 2006 release of Scratcha DVA’s The Voice of Grime—a now-classic, critic-approved album featuring over 20 singers—R&G’s once-bright spark, with a chance of lighting up the charts, fizzled out with no clear warning. Perhaps surprisingly, grime purists weren’t at the root of its demise. “The singers were just dropping off left, right, and center,” said DVA in a 2009 interview. “One minute, Gemma Fox would come in and make a banger, and then she’d disappear... Sadie would come along, and then disappear. No one just stayed there doing that whole sound, and that’s where it fell apart.”

After years of forum discussions and the odd column mention, the world was finally re-introduced to R&G in October 2013, upon the release of Kelela’s Cut 4 Me. With their Ruff Sqwad-esque backdrops from new wave experimentalists like Bok Bok, Jam City, Girl Unit, and Nguzunguzu, Kelela’s songs about being cocooned in love (“Bank Head”) and then devastatingly heartbroken by it (“Enemy”) captured R&G’s essence. The L.A.-based singer added a whole new depth to the R&G concept, though, striking chords with the electronic and alt-R&B scenes almost immediately. “I loved what Kelela did with that project,” Terror Danjah tells Pitchfork. “I recently worked with her on her forthcoming album and for her to say she was a fan of mine was mind-blowing to me, because I’m a big fan of hers. She represents everything R&G is about.”

Known for his cartoonish sound effects and glass-shattering bass patterns, East London’s Terror Danjah is one of the most respected beatmakers in grime, and helped form the blueprint of R&G’s sound. “I’m really into R&B slow jams, so at the time—2003, 2004—slow jams was still a big thing on local pirate radio,” he says. “I noticed as the beats got darker, the ladies were getting catered for less and less; plus, I like sweet vocals over rugged beats. I was listening to a lot of Musiq Soulchild and ’90s R&B around that time.”

But the concept didn’t come without some resistance in the beginning, Danjah says. “When I released ‘So Sure’ [by Sadie Ama and featuring Kano], [grime emcee] Crazy Titch said to me, ‘Stop doing the girl tunes and get back to making them hard riddims.’ Roughly six months later, he was like: ‘Oi, Terror! I need a ladies’ tune.’ [Laughs] At least Titch was honest, but everyone eventually embraced the sound.”

There have been whispers of an R&G comeback from Terror’s corner for a while now, but this year will see it through with the launch of his R&G Records. Along with producers D.O.K, Zed Bias, P Jam, TRC and Trends, Danjah will create a bevvy of sensually dark backdrops for vocalists to rip with their riffs and runs. The label’s first release will come from rising Cheshire, England, pop-R&B singer Olivia Louise, with the Danjah-produced “I’ll Follow U.” R&G also has releases planned from soul staple Shola Ama, her sister Sadie Ama, as well as former “X Factor” UK contestant Misha B.

Things are looking up for R&G, it seems, what with Danjah’s new label and the greatness we’re expecting from Kelela’s forthcoming debut. But in case you needed some extra schooling before things heat up, here’s a 20-song playlist (on Spotify and Apple Music) showing grime’s softer side.